MIT Self Assembly Lab prototypes 4D Knit Dress with personalized fit thanks to robotic heat shrinking of specialty cloth fibers

The MIT Self Assembly Lab has unveiled the 4D Knit Dress production method that uses heat-shrink fibers to achieve the perfect fit and style for any person.

Automation is frequently used in modern clothing production. Unique fabrics with various colors and designs are woven from threads in digital power looms. However, shoppers face limited clothing sizes and no guarantee of fit because machines only replicate preprogrammed cut dimensions.

The Lab collaborated with fashion company Ministry of Supply to create a fabrication process that ensures a perfect fit by using heat-shrink yarns. After a dress has been 3D-knitted with the special yarns, the dress is fitted.

A robot-mounted heat gun causes specific fibers to shrink to the desired shape and length. For safety, the dress shaped on a dummy during the heat treatment to prevent burns. This innovative treatment shapes the dress into the perfect fit and eliminates the problem of stocking unwanted sizes.

The benefit of this production method to society is the elimination of clothes that remain unbought because they don’t fit or are out of style. Moreover, the heat treatment can be reapplied at any time to restyle the dress. Uniquely, the dress is knitted as a single piece of fabric, so there is zero scrap waste.

The 4D Knit Dress technology has not yet been commercialized but has been demonstrated at the Ministry of Defense flagship store. In the meantime, why not pick up a set of space-saving clothes hangers (like these on Amazon) so you can squeeze more clothes into your closet.